And then he started picking up first one foot, then the other. I am not kidding. If I'd been watching it on TV, I'd have been saying, "Oh, that's BS. The guy really isn't pushing, he's just standing there." But ... I wasn't.

that's because you were trying to move his body which is a big mistake. been there done that. you need to move his mind. try looking behind him and yell "big blue fin!", then shove.